By Nicole Stewart Staff Reporter
When walking along Main Street in downtown Farmington, seniors who opened the door to the Roost were greeted by loud music playing from the DJ, chatty bar-goers, and their fellow classmates for the Senior Social.
The social was a way for the class of 2018 to relax for the night with their friends by dancing, talking and chowing down on the greasy, yummy bar food. Though the event was held from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., a majority of the class showed up towards the later hours of the Friday night. No matter what time the students showed up, it was a night for relaxation and forgetting about both the worries of school and of what is to come after graduation.
Michaela Zelie, a senior who attended the event, does not regret going and had a fun evening. “I enjoy spending time with my fellow classmates,” said Zelie. “It’s always fun. I always have a good time.”
When it came to the planning of the event, the president of the senior class, Sarah Young, admits that putting on a party like this takes a lot of time. In an email interview, Young said, “The class officers and I normally start a month in advance to begin planning our socials. Sometimes, we even start two months in advance. The process is pretty long as we have to obtain contracts from the locations that we are holding the socials at.”
This was not the first senior social that has been held this year. There have been four socials that have occurred during both semesters. The Roost is where the socials are typically held, but back in February, there was one held at Titcomb Mountain.
The recent social at the Roost was held on a Friday, instead of a Thursday like the socials usually are. Because of the day change, the Roost could not be shut down and exclusive to the senior class. It was open to the public of Farmington, while community members kept to themselves, seniors mingled with one another. The reason for the change was because the senior class urged for a Friday social so it would be easier to attend.
Zelie admitted that she enjoys the socials more at the Roost than she did at Titcomb Mountain. “It’s more veritable here [The Roost] than at the Mountain, because it was really overpriced,” Zelie said.
Another difference in the events was that since the Roost is downtown, it’s closer for students compared to Titcomb Mountain, which is farther away from campus. Also, the Roost offered more choices for students to pick from when it came to their beverages, where as the social at Titcomb only had a few selections.
Young believes that attending the socials are a good way for students to connect and relax no matter where the place is. “Ultimately, the conversations I’ve had wind up talking about school work, but that’s really only because our students at UMF are extremely passionate about what they do, and we want to be able to highlight their achievements,” said Young. “As long as you’re 21-years-old, I think that anyone should be able to attend these socials because the friends you make in one night can truly last for a lifetime!”